PASEC 2014 Design
Methodology
Quantitative Study
Method(s)
- Survey-based study
- Overall approach to data collection
- Proctored assessment and self-administrated surveys with the support of the PASEC Coordination Center
- Specification
- Trend study
Target population
All students formally enrolled in Grades 2 and the last grade (Grade 5 or 6) of primary school (formal education), regardless of the type of school (public, private, community, etc.)
Sample design
Stratified three-stage cluster sample design
First stage: school sampling
- Carried out 2 months before main data collection by the PASEC Coordination Center
- Stratification of schools by important variables (region, type of school, level, urbanization)
- Probability proportional to size (PPS): Systematic selection proportional to the combined size of the two grades.
- A standard random sample of 90 schools for Grade 2 and (at least) 180 schools for Grade 6 was selected from each country’s school database.
- For each sampled school, sampling of one or two replacement schools
- Sampling of different schools for field trial (20 schools in each country)
Second stage: sampling classes within schools
- One class from the target grades of each school selected by random sampling
- Carried out during school data collection operations by test administrators
Third stage: sampling students within sampled classes
- For Grade 6, selection of 20 students in each class (or less if the class size was under 20) by random sampling
- For Grade 2, selection of 10 students in each class (or less if the class size was under 10) by random sampling
- Carried out during school data collection operations by test administrators
Sample size
Intended
- Per country, Grade 2
- Grade sample: approx. 90 classes (a country may have more)
- Student sample: approx. 900 students
- Per country, Grade 6
- Grade sample: approx. 180 classes (a country may have more)
- Student sample: approx. 3,600 students
Achieved
In practice, these numbers were never reached, due to reasons of absenteeism, student withdrawal, closure of schools, etc.
Data collection techniques and instruments
Technique 1: achievement test and background questionnaire for Grade 2
- One-to-one administration
- Test specifics
- One common booklet for all students
- About 30 minutes per discipline (language and math)
- About 40 items per discipline
- Pupils answered questions orally with very short answers
- Tests were administered over the course of two mornings, with administrators responsible for data collection
- Test administrators were supervised and monitored by national teams.
- Background questionnaire for student
- One booklet
- Test administrators supported the completion of the questionnaire, reading questions and answers aloud and translating them into the native language of students, if needed.
Technique 2: achievement test and background questionnaire for Grade 6
- Pencil and paper
- Written questionnaire
- Collective administration
- Tests
- All items multiple-choice
- Number of booklets
- Four booklets for reading comprehension
- Four booklets for mathematics
- Four blocks of 23 items per discipline
- Approx. 92 items per discipline
- Each student administered 2 blocks per discipline
- Common examples before starting
- One hour maximum per block
- Break of 10 minutes minimum between blocks
- Each student administered 1 booklet with two blocks in reading and two blocks in math; the 2 blocks for each discipline were administered on the same day.
- Test administration with matrix sampling of items, i.e., rotated test booklet design within selected class
- Test administrators responsible for data collection.
- Test administrators supervised and monitored by national teams.
- Background questionnaire for student
- One booklet
- Test administrators supported the completion of the questionnaire, reading questions and answers aloud and translating them into the native language of students, if needed.
- Background questionnaire for teacher completed by the teacher of class being assessed
- Background questionnaire for school completed by the principal of school being sampled
Technique 3: Document analysis
- One chapter for international report to describe the context
- Written by the coordination center, based on national documents and data
- One chapter for each national report to describe the context
- Written by the countries based on their national documents and data
Techniques
- achievement test
- documents
- questionnaire
Languages
- Test developed in French
- Assessment instruments administered in 3 languages:
- French, 10 countries
- English, 1 subsystem
- Kirundi, 1 country for Grade 2
Translation procedures
- Test developed in French.
- Translation by two groups of linguistic and assessment experts
- External conciliator to ensure equivalence with the international version
- National verification and final validation by PASEC Coordination Center
Quality control of operations
Measures during data collection
- Countries were responsible for data collection
- Standardized survey operation procedures: step-by-step documentation of all operational activities provided with manuals
- International training for national PASEC team at each step
- International support and training for national PASEC team and test administrator, coding, data entry, and cleaning
- National quality control program
- International quality control program
Measures during data processing and cleaning
After data collection
- Standardized storage of instruments, with a manual of procedures made available for the national teams; verification of procedures on a country-by-country basis by PASEC
- Training of the team on data entry, with a manual of procedures made available
- Data entry controls incorporated (program, forms)
- Double data entry required for a percentage of the instruments (10% to 15%, depending on the type of instrument); data matching in order to estimate data entry errors; data entry repeated if necessary
Data cleaning
- First phase of data cleaning at the PASEC center by means of various verification programs to check for inconsistencies, missing values, outlet values, etc.
- Second phase of cleansing by national teams, as necessary, in the respective countries
Measures during data analysis and report writing
- PASEC (with expert support on some aspects) established estimates of student scores and contextual indices, followed by statistical analysis of the data; these steps were checked and validated by the PASEC Scientific Committee.
- The writing of the international report as well as the national reports was also checked and validated by the Scientific Committee.
Sources - Technical documentation
Other sources